Saddleback students given ability to express political, cultural views freely

MISSION VIEJO – Over 200 Saddleback College students discussed the possibility of a border wall at a forum on campus Wednesday.

The open discussion, called “No to Division, Yes to Unity!,” was put on by the Pre-Law Society and Model United Nations groups at the college. A mock border wall was wheeled to the quad area, giving some students a chance to openly write their views, in lieu of speaking.

“The wall is a symbolic representation. It is a form of art and we were hoping to create a discussion with a large visual display for students and that’s exactly what happened,” said Mariam El Hasan, who is involved with the MUN Club. “We’re very happy we got students to sign on the wall and speek up about how they feel about what’s going on in America today.”

Students of differing cultural beliefs and political backgrounds had the chance to share their opinions on the wall by speaking or placing notes on the mock border wall.

Raja Riahi, president of the Saddleback Pre-Law Society, said it was important for those in attendance to not only have the chance to speak, but to actively listen to other viewpoints and opinions.

“The border wall is something that is likely to happen, but nobody really talks about it,” Riahi said. “Different people, as we saw today, have different opinions, some are against it and some are for it, so we opened it up for discussion…. I think it was really successful.”